House Guest
by MangaMan250
Summary: After leaving the hospital, recovering from the battle at the valley of death, Naruto is assigned a personal task from the fifth Hokage. Tayuya, one of the members of the sound four is still alive, though she is left unable to walk and heavily dependent on her new care taker. NaruxTayu!
1. Chapter 1

"Naruto, I'm sure you know why I called you here today." The hokage offered, her face forming a serious expression that he wasn't quite used to seeing on the woman he called Baa-chan, she interlocked her fingers before resting her chin upon them, waiting for the blondes response.

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck nervously; in all honesty he really wasn't sure what it could be, after only just being released from hospital after a nasty brawl with a certain Uchiha the only thought that came to mind was that new information had been obtained on the raven haired boy's whereabouts.

"Um…It's not about _him _is it?" He questioned nervously, still rubbing the back of his neck as he looked towards the proud blonde situated behind the old wooden desk. Tsunade winced slightly at the thought of Naruto being enthusiastic to hear about Sasuke when in fact that was not the reason she had called him to her office.

"Actually it's more to do with the rescue mission that took place. You see, after scouting the area in which the series of battles took place, we came across a member of the Sound four who was still alive..." Tsunade paused unsure on how to continue as she gauged the blonde's response.

"Still alive!? Are they dangerous?!" He interrogated as he quickly angered, those sound four really did a number on the rescue team, in fact most of the members of said team were left hospitalized and fighting to survive.

"Not quite…" Tsunade answered before scratching her head, she was unsure of how to go about this but thought it may just be best to get it over with.  
>"In fact they're not dangerous at all in their current condition. However they are no longer aligned with Orochimaru and it is of vital importance that they are well cared for. They'll be a lot to deal with… but honestly, Naruto; you're the only one I can count on for this." She briefed almost feeling guilty for what she was about to drop on the blonde.<p>

"What do you mean baa-chan? I don't really get it" He said with a nervous chuckle, suddenly feeling a little under pressure, not to mention being somewhat embarrassed by her faith in him. Tsunade sighed, unable to think of a better option she decided to just go with her current plan.

"Shizune, bring Tayuya in here." As the Hokage ordered, the door crept open as the overly polite assistant wheeled in a girl with shocking red hair, now free from the hat it was once contained in, Tayuya's wild hair flowed down her back. She sat arms folded in an act of defiance; all though she had agreed to become an ordinary Konoha citizen she didn't say she was going to enjoy it.

"Naruto, this is Tayuya, she'll be living with you at your apartment. She'll need exclusive care and as such you will not be going on any missions until she has recovered." The Hokage said, as expected the blonde looked disheartened. Naruto glanced towards the red head sadly, he considered that she needed someone right now, though he would miss going on missions, he had already been given a mission, one that his baa-chan could only turn to him for, he'd do his best no matter what.

"The fuck are you looking at?!" The redhead challenged noticing the blonde looking her way for an extended amount of time, he was lost in thought but to her it appeared as if he was staring at her.  
>'<em>I know not being able to stand is weird and all but does he really have to fucking stare at me like im a freak!?' <em>Tayuya raged inwardly.

Naruto shook his head clear of thoughts as he came back to reality, he smiled at the red head ignoring her earlier comment, it wouldn't be wise to start bickering, especially in front of the Hokage  
>"Nice to meet you Tayuya, my name is Naruto Uzumaki." He gave her a foxy grin before turning to the fifth once again.<p>

The cogs slowly turned in Naruto's mind as he processed what was actually going on.  
>"Wait…She's going to be living with me!?" He bellowed suddenly outraged with the idea, how come he was getting someone randomly thrust into his home, what about the medical staff or the hospital, what made him any better suited for the situation than anyone else?<p>

"Hey it's not like I wanna sit around in some shit pit while you run around after me asshole!" Tayuya roared, her anger peaking as the blonde talked about her as if she wasn't even in the room, she glanced downwards at her legs, broken and battered they were left in no working condition.  
>The word 'burden' echoed through her mind but she refused to acknowledge it<br>'_Why do I care!? If they wanna give me my own personal slaves, then that's up to them!' _ She thought to herself, letting out a low growl aloud.

Tsunade glared at the blonde boy in her office causing him to let out a defeated sigh. He turned to the red head who also seemed to be glaring at him, nervously he offered a smile before scratching the back of his head.  
>"G-Gomen…It's just well…I've lived alone my whole life, its kinda sudden, y'know?" He apologised before nervously chuckling but to his dismay the redhead merely huffed before turning away.<p>

"Well it's settled then, Naruto from here on out Tayuya is your responsibility, you're dismissed." Tsunade spoke until she had to correct herself.  
>"Oh and Naruto, due to the way Tayuya's legs are broken, it would be best if you carried her, it's not good for her to be sat in that position for an extended amount of time, please try to keep this in mind." She said calmly, she leant over her desk and began looking through the drawers signifying the meeting was over.<p>

"Well Naruto, what are you waiting for?!" she said suddenly appearing above the desk once more seemingly annoyed. Naruto was stood clueless in the office; he wasn't sure how to approach the delicate matter of picking up the red head from out of her chair.

"What the hell are you doing asshole?! Didn't you hear her?! I'm not supposed to sit like this!" Tayuya roared at the blonde who was currently suffering awkwardly.  
>"Naruto! What are you doing?!" The hokage shouted allying herself with the ex-sound ninja.<p>

"Alright! Alright! I didn't wanna hurt her, jeez!" Naruto shouted back, letting out a heavy sigh, he crouched down in front of the chair, Tayuya following his plan, wrapped her arms around his shoulders, as gently as he could manage, Naruto held the girls legs before standing with her, carrying her in a 'piggy back'.

Tayuya felt slightly guilty as she heard him announce that he didn't want to hurt her, for some reason that she didn't understand she felt that he truly had no intention of harming her.

"Awhh don't you two look cute! Look Shizune don't they make the best couple?" Tsunade teased, her mischievous side out in force causing her assistance to giggle at the two in front of them.  
>Naruto couldn't help but blush, though it didn't help that Tayuya nuzzled against his back in an attempt to hide her blushing face.<p>

"What are you waiting for asshole!? Get the hell going already!" Tayuya demanded as she fought back her embarrassment, she never did take teasing well, besides it wasn't as if she wanted to be carried around!

"R-right!" Naruto too embarrassed to function properly merely agreed to the command, opening the door fully intending on racing to his apartment to escape from any further teasing. As he opened the door, he saw Sakura stood there, the cherry blossom had her mouth ajar in shock as she saw her blonde team mate carrying an attractive girl who seemed to be snuggling into his back.

Sakura shook off her momentary shock, giving a light cough before speaking, unsure what to say  
>"N-Naruto…it's uhh…good to see that you're feeling better…" She offered awkwardly before squeezing past the two to escape into the office, she looked at the hokage who sat with a knowing smirk, unable to resist she glanced back at the two with a questioning gaze, it appeared the girl really was nuzzling into the blondes back. Letting out a short 'hmph', Sakura turned to the Hokage for orders.<p>

Naruto was soon carefully jumping from rooftop to rooftop, landing delicately to make sure he didn't hurt his passenger, he couldn't imagine that she was in any mood to talk, so stayed silent as he travelled across the village hidden in the leafs, to his surprise however the red head spoke up.

"So…I guess we'll be living together then…" She thought aloud hoping to start some form of conversation, looking at the back of the blondes head waiting for a response. Naruto landed before speaking, to ensure that he didn't accidently land with unexpected force.  
>"I guess so…" Naruto answered much to Tayuya's disappointment, she frowned, from what she remembered the blonde was pretty outgoing; she found it odd that he'd be so quiet.<p>

"I guess you're not exactly excited about it, especially with me being an ex-member of that squad…" She pushed, this time he had to respond properly, the silence was deafening, she really didn't know if she'd be able to sit through it day in day out, Naruto landed, he had stopped at his front door…  
>'<em>Our…front door.'<em> He corrected in his head.  
>"Don't worry about that, what's done is done, let's just start fresh." Naruto replied, she could somehow guess that he was smiling; she had to admit she was somewhat thankful, though she wouldn't let it show.<p>

Naruto pushed open the door and revealed a spotless one bedroom apartment, there was wooden flooring running right through the place and the living room area was the first thing visible upon entering. A tired looking brown couch sat in the centre of the 'room' with a small oak coffee table within reaching distance of it.

Looking around the place, still on Naruto's back, Tayuya noticed the door leading to boy's bedroom, it was left open slightly and from what she could make out, the bedroom; much like the rest of the apartment, was clinically clean.

She couldn't help but notice the fresh smell that filled the air, glancing around once more she presumed it was due to the plant life that were proudly on display around the small apartment, to her surprise they looked incredibly healthy, their leaves a luscious green, it was easy to see that they were well cared for. Still she couldn't shake off the underlying aroma of beef ramen.

Not wanting to give in to silence once again, Tayuya continued the conversation.  
>"So, what made you wanna chase that faggot so bad anyway?" She said hoping to get an answer, she wasn't sure on how to approach the topic but was more than a little curious, so she decided to be her usual self, brash and rather insensitive.<p>

She felt the blonde carrying her wince as he closed the door, memories of the fight at death valley returning to him, a weak smile decorated his face as he tried to ignore the rather tasteless way the girl had asked her question, it was his job to take care of her, no one mentioned that she was going to be co-operative.

"He's my only real friend…" Naruto said glumly a sad smile gracing his features as he carefully set down the red head on the old brown couch, she was laid comfortably across it and Naruto was soon out of her field of view as he walked away from her, she couldn't help but wonder just how much that Uchiha meant to this blonde, it was rather bizarre for her, a ninja caring about someone else so much.

"There were times when we couldn't stand each other…we'd always fight, never wanting to lose to the other." Naruto continued softly from the other room, stealing a glance at his team's photo as he spoke, though he soon reappeared much to the comfort of the girl. The idea of being alone in this hidden village was not exactly pleasant, though for some reason the blondes facial expression made her feel guilty for even bringing up the subject of the raven.

'_This stupid ass village is making me soft…'_ she thought to herself trying to shake it off, to her surprise she felt two warm hands around her waist, she realised however that Naruto was merely adjusting her sitting position by providing her with soft pillows to rest on.

"I'm sure you got other friends, what was so good about him? Do you love him or somethin'?" The red head asked mocking the blonde with a smirk, to her shock however he simply closed his eyes momentarily, let out a soft sigh then offered her another smile, she didn't really understand but then again she didn't really care either.

"I have other friends…sorta…" he said scratching at the back of his head. He frowned, thinking deeply about this or so it seemed, he sat down by her feet on the beaten couch as if to help him with the matter, then spoke again.  
>"Honestly if people saw us they'd doubt we were really friends at all, but that was the only way we knew how to be friends." He said leaning back against the sofa arm as he did, a hint of regret in his voice was present throughout the conversation.<p>

Suddenly Naruto stood with an overly large grin on his face  
>"Well! There's no use in thinking too much about it, I'll bring him back one day…" He said enthusiastically, then turned away giving a disheartened look to the ground<br>"I promised…" he muttered to himself, leaving Tayuya slightly confused, though she decided she was now bored of hearing the blonde talk about the love of his life.

"Hey asshole, as fascinating as all that was I'm hungry." She said in a voice that told him she pretty much didn't care about what he had to say, Naruto, much to her annoyance was now focused on reading the list of instructions left on his counter by the fifth hokage.  
>"Oi! I said im hungry!" She declared. It wasn't like she could get up and make something herself after all.<p>

"Hmm… says here that you should bathe before you eat, something about the hot water being good for your legs." He said, not all that educated when it came to medical stuff, sure he could look after himself and knew symptoms of certain common things, this however did not mean he was a qualified doctor. He wondered if he would in fact be capable of caring for this girl, in honesty he didn't mind having her around, it livened up the place at least. He'd just have to do his best.

"Great lemme just go ahead an' do that then…ohhh yeah, how could I have been so stupid!? My fucking legs don't work you asshole." She raged at the blonde, she hated not being able to do things that could be considered everyday things, it made her feel useless.

Naruto just sighed and went into the bathroom; she heard the water running as it hit the bath below, suddenly filling the silent apartment with sound. She considered for a moment that she had truly hurt the blonde, he was trying, she could tell that much.  
>'<em>That alone is more than anyone else has done…'<em> She considered before angrily shaking her head confused once more by her sudden attitude change…though she had to admit she was a tiny bit concerned that the blonde still hadn't replied to her.

He walked back into the living room, the bath still running as he headed towards the sink, the red head couldn't help but follow him with her eyes unknowingly, she expected an answer. To her frustration though the blonde merely filled up a small jug with water then made a beeline to his prized plant life.

He slowly poured water into the different plant pots with an amount of care that was strange to witness as the ex-sound ninja watched over him, he seemed to genuinely enjoy feeding them she mused, as a warm smile graced his features. It wasn't long until the blonde had fed all of the plants around the room, in silence much to Tayuya's irritation.

Naruto, hearing the water still running went to check on the bath, seeing it he decided that it was full enough, putting his hand in he stirred the water checking its temperature, seemingly pleased he stood in the door way and smiled, silently telling the girl that her bath was indeed ready.

She had to admit she didn't enjoy this, for some reason it just wasn't funny that she had hurt the blonde, with the way she was treating him since the Hokages office she considered he didn't care what she thought of him, though now she wasn't so sure.

"Oi…" she spoke, Naruto sighed interrupting her and hurriedly came to her side. She felt his gentle touch before he picked her up bridal style, leaving her head softly lean against his chest, she noted that it wasn't exactly unpleasant, then gave a 'hmph' as if to correct herself.

Naruto, doing his best to be mature about the awkward situation that he now found himself in, gently rest the girl on the floor, her back propped up against the bath allowing her to sit up.  
>Soon she was wrapped up in a soft cream towel, she didn't understand at first, then the blonde began to remove her sandals, after removing them he looked up at her to check if she was okay with his method, Tayuya, now rather embarrassed merely turned her head away, allowing the boy to continue.<p>

Soon Naruto had carefully removed her combat pants, making sure not to hurt the girl by taking them off slowly. Still looking away the red head co-operated momentarily as the blonde lifted her arms in order to take off her shirt, though the towel did help with the awkwardness somewhat the ex-sound ninja still found herself blushing a shade that matched her hair as her arms disappeared into the towel.

The blonde thankfully looked away, making it a little less embarrassing as the girl that was now a permanent resident in his home took off her remaining items of clothing, she gave a nervous cough, subtly informing him that she was finished, he turned slowly unsure of how to proceed.

The girl in front of him, now blushing heavily as she looked away, was now sat naked in his bathroom, with a only a towel covering her, deciding to just deal with the situation at hand, Naruto lifted her bridal style, then carefully lowered her into the bath, effectively soaking the towel much to her confusion.

As Tayuya was lowered into the bath she let out a soothed 'ahhh' of relief, slightly embarrassed by the action she was once more facing away from the blonde. Naruto just opened the simple white bathroom cupboard, revealing a soft looking collection of cream towels much like the one that was currently wrapped around the girl.

The blonde then set them out, leaving them folded over the bath at a distance she could reach, then left the room, closing the door to allow the girl some privacy. Tayuya removed the now irritating wet towel then lay back, stretching out as she allowed the water to wash over her; the temperature was just how she liked it, not that she'd ever mention that.

What the blonde had been told was correct, the soothing effect of the hot water was indescribable as she sunk even lower enjoying the relaxing sensation, her red mane now flowing around her as she stared up at the ceiling, she let out a sigh as she considered that the blonde still hadn't spoken to her, it echoed around the bathroom due to the acoustics, making her feel even more disheartened.  
>'<em>Maybe he's given up…'<em> She thought to herself a little saddened, in the privacy she now had, she didn't bother fighting against the thought, she had always been lonely, no one had ever cared.

She realised of course that getting to know her was incredibly difficult due to her defence mechanisms, her brash way of speaking that often hurt people and of course her inability to allow anyone in, now though it seemed she didn't really have a choice.

The redhead was now in a foreign village, after agreeing to become a citizen of Konoha this would also be where she would be staying, honestly she felt a little lucky to even be alive at this point. While looking up at the blank white ceiling she remembered the conversation she had with Tsunade before meeting the blonde.

_"You're making me live with someone?" Tayuya spoke, doing her best to keep herself in check; this was the Hokage she was speaking to after all.  
>"You're lucky you haven't been executed, you're in no position to start making demands." The Hokage spoke sternly, glaring at the red head that had been brought to her attention.<em>

_"Don't worry, the person you'll be staying with is the most caring person I've ever met…in fact even though you were his enemy, if I told him I'd be executing a girl who couldn't even walk…well I'd be willing to bet my life that he'd fight for your freedom with everything he had" The hokage explained, a sad smile graced her features, momentarily confusing the ex-sound ninja before she softly continued.  
>"…even if it killed him."<em>

_"Why?" was the only answer Tayuya could manage to reply with, to her surprise the fifth just shrugged  
>"he doesn't care much about himself but if you were to tell him someone was in trouble he'd do whatever he could to make them better…heh that brat is the only reason im sat behind this desk right now and not sat in some bar drinking." Tsunade sighed, realizing she may have gotten a little too personal.<em>

_"Listen…" The hokage started again as Tayuya's attention snapped back to her  
>"He might have a lot of problems, well he hasn't exactly lead a great life…but the kid's got a heart of gold, even if you step on him, push him around, hurt him until he wished he didn't exist… if he's decided you're a good person he'll be there for you always." Tsunade said, surprising herself almost at the love she held for the young blonde.<em>

_Tayuya looked to be in thought, did such a person really exist? It had to be some kinda deception…  
>"What do you mean 'hasn't exactly lead a great life'?" Tayuya questioned however the fifth just shook her head solemnly showing that she wasn't willing to talk about it, with that Shizune wheeled her out of the office.<em>

The bath water, though still warm was beginning to lose its initial soothing feeling as the red head began to wonder just how long she had been laid there.  
>'<em>Heh…I've even managed to drive away someone the Hokage considers a saint.' <em>Tayuya thought to herself, to her surprise a wet streak was suddenly present across her cheek, followed by another then another.

She soon realised she was crying, aggressively wiping away the tears she blamed her strange behaviour on the fact that she had been in the bath too long. Removing the plug she laid there, as the bath drained of its contents, and after a short while the water had left her. Reaching over to the soft cream towel she began drying herself, struggling somewhat though she managed.

After she was done, with a stretch she was able to reach her underwear, after partly dressing herself she did her best to wrap herself in one of the unused, dry towels, letting out a large sigh she knew she needed help at this stage.

"Oiiii…" She shouted weakly, honestly she hadn't even heard the blonde, for all she knew he may not even be in the other room as she hoped…he really could have left her and worst of all there was nothing she could do about it, cutting off her thoughts rather suddenly though the door creaked open.

He offered a sad smile, one that she thought she may have caused, unable to take it she glanced away, uncomfortable with new situation. His warm hands gently touched her legs before he picked her up in a bridal style, her head once against softly resting against his chest, her hair still somewhat wet left streaks down his black tank top, the white Uzumaki swirl that decorated the centre was now becoming almost grey due to the moisture.

As soon as she was carried out of the bathroom she was overwhelmed by a pleasant smell, she could see a simple chicken curry cooking alongside some boiling white rice but for some reason she knew that a certain amount of care had been taken when preparing it, causing her lips to curve upwards slightly without her realising it.

He lay her down on the discoloured brown sofa, the pillows keeping her upright, and despite its age she had to admit the couch was pretty comfortable, far more comfortable than she was used to anyway. She noticed the simple brush that was left well within her reach as Naruto went to tend to the cooking, still silent, she couldn't help but notice.

Again she felt guilty, the boy was still looking out for her, even in small ways that she wouldn't even consider, she pulled on the clothes left on the couch for her before picking up the brush,struggling a little to balance,she did her best to comb through her long hair. Quickly becoming infuriated by the tangled locks she began aggressively tugging at them in an attempt to comb through them.

Naruto, hearing the violent noise turned around without her noticing and was soon stood behind her. Gently his hand touched hers, stopping the violent motion before relieving her of the brush. She was confused, embarrassed and once again feeling guilty, not knowing what to say however she sat in place silently.

She felt warm fingers gently stroke through her strawberry locks which almost caused her to shudder at the gentle touch, this continued for a just a moment then she felt the brush glide through her now untangled mane. As much as she hated to admit it, and never would, she found the feeling extremely relaxing although incredibly foreign.

"You should take better care of it…" the blonde spoke quietly while continuing to comb her tangled hair.  
>"Why the fuck do you care?" She snapped, not even shouting, she wondered why she said what she did, wondering if it was the fact she felt she didn't deserve his kindness, perhaps she was actually <em>trying<em> to drive him a way. She considered maybe; maybe she even wanted him to deal with everything she could through at him and still be there for her…  
>'<em>Maybe im going fucking soft more like!' <em>she raged to herself suddenly.

Naruto wasn't sure if it was wise to give his reason, but decided it was better to be honest.  
>"W-Well…it's just really pretty, it would be a shame if you didn't look after it…" he said nervously, adding a chuckle to hopefully make the compliment less awkward, he considered he was not one to mention hair care seeing as his now long hair had out grew it usual style.<p>

"W-Whatever!" Tayuya retorted as she fought down a blush, hearing a soft chuckle from behind her which only served to add fuel to the fire, the red head became infuriated.  
>"What the fuck is so funny!?" she roared at the blonde who was still gently caring for her hair.<br>"It's just that, despite the way you act, you're a good person Tayuya-chan." The ex-sound ninja was suddenly glancing down at her knees as she remembered what Tsunade had said to her, before realising the honorific, confident that she was being mocked Tayuya twisted her body, ready to bite the blondes head off but to her surprise she was only met with a warm smile, making her falter.

"T-Thanks…i guess, I mean…isn't the food burning or something?" She said softly, her crappy attempt to change the subject almost making her cringe at the sound of her voice saying it aloud.  
>"T-That's right I better check on it" he said with a smile, happy to be free from the somewhat awkward moment, he handed her the brush back and was pleased to see from the corner of his eye that the red head was in fact combing through her hair with a lot more care.<p>

"Who the fuck taught you to cook!?" Tayuya yelled as she took her first mouthful of the simple chicken curry, the blonde seemingly a little hurt from the outburst was happy when she continued  
>"Seriously if I get to eat like this every night living with your sorry ass might not be so bad!" She announced before tucking into her food at a speed that surprised even Naruto.<p>

Happy with the compliment the blonde merely finished his meal with a smile, sat at the side of his new flatmate's feet, he considered that having the redhead around may not be so bad after all.  
>Soon the two had finished, Naruto was seen at the sink as he set to cleaning up, he hated it when the place was a mess, to him if it was messy it seemed like the person didn't care about the place they were living in, which was the exact opposite of Naruto.<p>

To the blondes surprise there was a knock on the door, Tayuya looked at the door with distaste, she was comfortable stretched out on the sofa and no way in hell was she moving, though it was okay for Naruto to sit beside her she supposed, it was his apartment after all.

"Oh! Hey Sakura-chan!" Naruto said happily, his voice a tone that Tayuya hadn't heard him use, he opened the door wider allowing the cherry blossom girl to enter, who then smiled towards the red head, Tayuyamerely growled before looking away.  
>"Wow something smells good! You should have told me you could cook Naruto!" Sakura declared before giggling innocently as the blonde rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment.<p>

"W-Well it's nothing special really" he replied offering a nervous chuckle in his defence  
>"I hope you're taking care of you new roommate!" Sakura yelled happily, although she sounded somewhat stern she knew Naruto would have probably been fussing over his guest already.<br>"He is." Tayuya said flatly before smirking towards the pinkette who couldn't help but frown  
>"What the hell are you doing here anyway pinkie? Did the Hokage send you to check on me?" the red head continued, bored of listening to the two team mates talk without her.<p>

Sakura's frown deepened at the way the girl had spoken to her, but trying to keep face she offered a fake smile as she tried to fight back her rage.  
>"No Tsunade-sama didn't send me…I just dropped by to visit Naruto to make sure he wasn't still injured, he has a tendency to leave the hospital without resting properly." Sakura said a little saddened at the mention of Naruto and his frequent visits to the hospital.<br>"Well I can see you're looking much better now Naruto, goodnight!" The cherry blossom spoke with a smile but before Naruto could respond the pinkette hugged him tightly whispering something to him.

Tayuya glared at the scene, she didn't know why but she did not like what she was witnessing one bit, some girl came into her new home and started well…she just wasn't comfortable with it, it was awkward!  
>'<em>Who the hell does she think she is?! Coming here acting all smug like she owns the place! Telling secrets n' shit! If she has something to say she should just say it!" <em>The red head raged inwardly, unsure of why she was so angry.

Sakura un-hugged the embarrassed, confused blonde before heading over to the doorway  
>"O-Oh uhh…good night Sakura-chan." He said with an embarrassed grin, Tayuya shot daggers at him at the use of 'chan' after Sakura's name, letting out a low growl the red head decided waiting any longer for the pinkette to leave would be too sickening for her to take.<p>

"Goodnight pinkie." Tayuya said coldly, earning a look from the cherry blossom girl, knowing where she was not welcome she managed to flash a smile to the ex-sound ninja before taking her leave.

"So!?" Tayuya immediately questioned as soon as the door closed, Naruto tilted his head, confused at what the girl situated on his couch meant by her question.  
>"What the hell did she say to you?!" Tayuya roared from her seat, folding her arms to make her impatience known, the blonde just chuckled nervously.<br>"W-Well she just wanted to thank me for trying to bring Sasuke back, she's always…" The blonde stopped himself a little heavy hearted before steeling himself to continue  
>"well…she's always <em>liked<em> Sasuke." He finished, a sad smile present on his face, Tayuya noted the way he paused though for some reason she couldn't help but smile inwardly as she heard that the pink banshee already had her eyes on some one.

Naruto disappeared into the bedroom without saying anything further, unknown to him however Tayuya could see into the room from where she was, she watched the blonde curiously as he pulled something off of his bedside table, it was what looked to be a small picture frame.

Naruto sighed heavily as he looked down at the only photo he owned, his team photo, the smiling pinkette in the centre while he and Sasuke flat out refused to accept one another, to him it was his team in a nutshell, Kakashi was even smiling ignoring the petty bickering that was taking place.

His lips were pulled upwards slightly as he remembered some of his happier team seven moments, a soft genuine laugh echoed around the apartment as he thought about their jounin test  
>'<em>Even the great Sasuke Uchiha was forced to feed me'<em> he chuckled again, a little more sadly this time.  
>Gently setting the frame back on the bedside table he left the bedroom, just in time to hear the red head that would now be a permanent guest at his home, let out a rather large yawn.<p>

"Tired?" He asked with a warm smile, the red head not feeling like snapping at the boy after what she just saw only nodded sleepily in response, the blonde was soon by her side and like the other times he had carried her around, he picked her up bridal style, being careful not to cause her discomfort.

She had to say she was momentarily surprised that Naruto switched to holding her with just one arm while pulling back the bed quilt, feeling relaxed however she didn't feel like even mentioning it as he softly placed her on to the comfortable mattress below.

Naruto looked down at her as he pulled the blanket over her, he was glad; she looked at lot happier than when she first arrived in his care, he found himself hoping that he was something to do with it as she stared back up at him, her chocolate brown eyes looking deep into his cerulean blue ones, before she could speak however, Naruto smiled and spoke.

"Goodnight Tayuya-chan" He said softly, then gave her another warming smile, she couldn't help but avert her gaze before responding  
>"Y-Yeah…goodnight…" she cleared her throat then said something at a speed that Naruto struggled to understand<br>"N-Naruto-kun." Still looking away as a blush formed on her face, she was happy that the blonde never made a big deal out of it, in fact, she was happy. A smile came her features causing Naruto's smile to grow wider. The blonde turned and left the room, leaving the door open as he turned the living room light off.

Pulling the blanket over himself Naruto did his best to get comfortable on his trusty old couch, and after a few minutes of fidgeting he managed to find a position he was happy with. Letting out a content sigh he now was pleased that he didn't live alone, he felt needed in a way that he couldn't quite describe.

The blonde resting on the sofa eventually closed his eyes, though he lay awake thinking like he did most nights, having to stroke the long blonde hair out of his eyes every now and again due to laying on his side didn't really help, still he wasn't complaining.

Almost an hour passed or so he'd imagined, he'd heard the gentle noise of Tayuya's blankets being shifted around for a long time, making him consider that she'd been asleep for quite some time.  
>Until he heard the aggravated:<br>"Arghh!…" that she let out as she struggled sleep.

"Asshole!" She shouted quietly only to get no response  
>"Asshole? ..." She yelled in a hushed tone once again, this time wondering if he was actually asleep, Naruto realised there was a pause, as if the red head had given up then he heard a gentle cough.<br>"N-nn…N-Naruto-Kun? …" She questioned with no small amount of embarrassment.

"What is it Tayu-chan?" He answered softly; the red head looking up at the plain white ceiling now sported a blush as she heard her newly given affectionate nickname.  
>"Can you come in here already?" she asked softly, Naruto a little taken back by the request figured it was something important, pulling off his blanket and removing himself from the comfortable position he had managed to find, he headed towards his bedroom…well what used to be his bedroom.<p>

She saw him enter the bedroom from the corner of her eye, her nervousness coming back in force as soon as he did, it would have been easier to ask him without him being in the room.  
>'<em>Good going…' <em>She chastised herself as he now peered down at her.

As he looked down at her, for some reason she thought it was a good idea to remember that he had complimented her hair, causing her cheeks to become a similar shade of red.  
>"Is everything okay, Tayu-chan?" he asked, leaning over her slightly to make sure she could see him in the dimly lit room, although the window was directly right of the bed, the cloudy night didn't do well in providing a source of light.<p>

"I c-cant sleep." She said flatly, her embarrassment clear as she stuttered out her words while fighting down a soft blush, thankful that the room was not brightly lit.  
>"Is there anything I can do to help?" He asked softly, smiling down at her as he once again got the feeling of being needed.<p>

"Well…I'm not really used to sleeping alone, at the hideouts we always had to share a bed…I had to sleep top to bottom with Kin..." She said opening up to the blonde a little while rambling to try and beat around the bush, it was difficult for her to ask this kinda thing.

"Soo…you'd like me to sleep like that with you?" Naruto asked, not sure where the red head was going with this. A fierce blush lit up her cheeks as she answered.  
>"W-Well…I mean…sorta but like…k-kinda…well… you don't have to sleep at the other end…" She spat out, shrinking back under the blankets a little in an attempt to hide herself from the mockery that would surely be thrown upon her.<p>

To her surprise Naruto just left the room, before she could complain though he was back, armed with his pillows as he placed them down next to the ex-sound ninja's. He pulled back the sheets while looking at her, silently asking her if she was sure, the redhead only looked at him expectedly, almost forcing him in with her stare.

Naruto climbed in the bed in one quick movement, pulled the blanket over them and rested his head on the pillows. Then came the awkward part, he turned on his side, glancing at the girl next to him, and suddenly the two were both aware of just how close they actually were. Naruto was thankful that the girl was staring up at the ceiling and not facing him, somehow it made this situation a little less embarrassing.

Then the red head turned on her cheek, facing him, her hair following her movement as it fell over her eyes, to her surprise though, a finger gently stroked it away then continued to comb through her hair, she shivered from the soft touch, biting back her embarrassment she threw one of her arms around the blonde, using him to allow herself to roll on her side.

Naruto surprised her a second time as a hand softly trailed across her stomach until an arm was roped around her waist, not being given the time to voice her opinion she was carefully pulled close to him, her head resting underneath his chin.

Not caring about her incredible embarrassment any longer the red head nuzzled against the boys chest, as her grip around him tightened. The feeling of being held close was completely foreign to her but she couldn't help but feel warm and safe.

His hand traced through her soft red mane as he continue to stroke it, the girl nuzzling into his chest was letting out soft hitched breathes as he did so, he rested his chin upon her head as he hugged her a little tighter. He shivered slightly as he felt Tayuya trace her fingers up and down his back lightly, letting out a giggle that he didn't know she could produce.

Deciding to get his own back he leant over her slightly then blown a soft stream of cold air against her neck, almost immediately causing her to shiver and nuzzle against him in defiance, letting out a soft yawn as she did so. The red head squeezed her blonde care taker softly as a feeling of happiness she had never experienced washed over her.

"G-Goodnight Naruto-kun..." she whispered, still a little embarrassed, though she felt her gentle squeeze returned as the blonde held her close.  
>"Night, night Tayu-chan." He replied, barely audible as the two drifted off into a peaceful sleep.<p>

My apologies! I know it's not 'The Hunted' but I intend for Chapter 13 to have a lot of stuff going on, and im not quite sure what all of it is yet, haha. NaruxTayu is one of my favourite pairings, and wanted to write a story more based around them, of course I will still be working on 'The Hunted' I intend to write alot and in case you're wondering this chapter only took a day to write! Productive is so unlike me…I must be getting sick haha.

Favourites, alerts and Groups are always super appreciated! I also try to answer all reviews via PM.

Ja ne!  
>-MM.<p> 


	2. Chapter 2

"Mhhhh" Tayuya groaned painfully as she slowly began to wake up, she had somehow managed to roll over on to her chest in her sleep leaving her head buried in the soft cotton pillow. The ex-sound nin shook her head softly, denying the sudden displeasure of waking up while wiping her drool stained face, this kunoichi was really not a morning person.

The sun's rays gently illuminated the small apartment, piercing through the closed navy blue metal shutter blinds, stabbing at the chocolate eyes of the sleepy red head causing her to groan again. To her annoyance the birds outside happily began to chirp their merry tune, very much enjoying the beautiful summers morning, the clear blue sky was lined with soft fluffy clouds and a soothing delicate breeze rolled through Konoha, providing relief to the pleasant hot sunny weather.

Tayuya reluctantly opened her tired eyes, noting that she was sprawled across the centre of the bed. She couldn't feel her blonde caretaker anywhere nearby, especially not in the bed. Her eyes widened slightly as a heavy blush washed over her; immediately burying her face deeply into the pillow, the sleepy musician hid her embarrassment while remembering the previous night.

'_What was I thinking?!'_ Tayuya raged inwardly, having no idea what had come over her as the two of them had laid in the comfort of each other's embrace, she shut her eyes tight in denial.  
><em>'This fucking village really is making me soft<em>!' The red head whined as her face glowed a soft pink, she punched one of the pillows besides her in anger, not wanting to accept reality,  
>'<em>Well...at least he isn't here right now! Fuck, that would have been awkward...'<em> She mused with a heavy sigh, trying to reassure herself that everything was fine. Thankful that the blonde had gotten up before her, Tayuya worked on calming her blush, doubting that her face could become anymore red than it already was, though she sure as hell didn't want to test that theory.

Naruto was happily cooking in the kitchen, he stood over the stove enjoying the pleasant morning while making breakfast for the two of them, to the blonde it was nothing special, just some white rice along with some of the left over spiced chicken from their meal yesterday, miso soup and a hot cup of coffee, the Hokage-wannabe didn't really like coffee all that much but figured Tayuya was the kind of person who would. Smiling a little sadly, he remembered it was the third Hokage who had bought it for him, the man would sit with him for a while on mornings if his tight schedule allowed it, enjoying the simple drink and the boy's company. Naruto shook his head solemnly but he was glad he had such precious memories of the elder.

"Oiiii! Asshole! I'm awake!" He heard her yell loudly from the other room. The blonde had closed the door after leaving the room, being careful to not wake her up as he prepared their breakfast.  
>'<em>I'm glad I got up first...I think it would be best to stay quiet about yesterday...after all she's new to the village, it must be pretty scary, especially with her condition. Anyone could use comforting in a situation like that.' <em>Naruto thought wisely to himself, he wasn't exactly big on intellectual thoughts and discussions but if there's one thing he did understand it was ways to avoid getting punched by girls, Sakura had educated him on that.

"Yoohooo!? Asshole!? I'm awake now! Little help!?" She rudely summoned, clapping her hands to make as much noise as possible causing the blonde lovingly nicknamed 'Asshole' to sigh, letting out a chuckle as he did. He opened the door to the bedroom with a caring smile, trying his best to make her feel welcome. Tayuya was laid out on her back now, staring at the doorway intently with a light blush dusting over her features.

"Tch, took you long enough!" She shot with a sly smirk, mocking him as he came over to her,  
>"Morning Tayu-chan!, I was just making breakfast." He gave a foxy grin while happily looking down at her, she immediately looked away from him at the sound of the nickname he'd given her, causing the Hokage-wannabe to chuckle softly, pulling back her blankets as he did.<p>

"So where will it be Miss?" Naruto asked with a cheery smile, she rolled her eyes as he scooped her up bridal style letting her head gently press against his chest. Though Tayuya was instantly reminded of the night before she didn't fight against it and let her head hang limp against him, enjoying the closeness.  
>'<em>Tch...he hasn't really done anything wrong after all. It was my fault that shit happened.'<em> She considered thoughtfully as he walked towards the living room. Sure, she could be a bitch and she knew it, but the red head wasn't stupid, in fact Tayuya had managed to almost best Shikamaru in their battle of wits, meaning that while she wasn't exactly great at controlling her feelings or emotions, sometimes she could at least understand them and force herself to remain calm...on a good day at least.

"Oh man, something smells awesome!" She perked up with excitement as they entered the main body of the apartment, the smell of the frying spiced chicken sizzling in its pan had invaded her nose making her stretch up in the blondes arms, trying to peak over at just what it was he was whipping up.  
>"Yup! Nothing fancy! Just leftovers and rice." He beamed happily while giving a pout childish pout,<br>"If I had my way i'd be eating ramen, every day, every meal! " He muttered with disappointment while travelling over to the tired brown couch, the blonde placed her down as she looked up at him with sudden curiosity,  
>"What's so fuckin good 'bout ramen anyway?" She questioned with irritation, to her it was just a simple dish, sure it made a good snack but the ramen she had eaten always tasted processed with an underlying discomfort that it definitely wasn't good for her body.<br>"It fills you with determination!" Naruto chirped with joy as he glanced over at the smirking kunoichi  
>"So then just fuckin' eat it! You got your own place so it's not like you got any rules!" She ordered with a huff, to her it was the most obvious thing in the world, then again she considered the blonde wouldn't exactly remain in good health if all he ate was noodles.<br>"Ero-Sennin would kick my ass..." Naruto muttered with clear displeasure, he sounded like a wounded puppy whining like that, to his surprise Tayuya burst into laughter at the nickname he'd given his teacher.

"Who the fuck is Ero-Sennin?" The kunoichi spat while laughing again, she didn't think the blonde could be so disrespectful to someone, in a way it made her feel a little better about how she talked,  
>"Huh? Oh! He's one of the three sannin! He's super strong..." Naruto felt himself face palm as he tried to describe his godfather to the girl below him without embarrassing himself in the process<br>"But he's also a super pervert...he peeps in hot springs and writes these really weird books that Kakashi-sensei reads all the damn time! Why are all my teachers perverts!?" He carefully explained before yelling desperately at the realisation.

"Yeah well you better not be like them! Try anything funny and I'll scoop out your eyes and feed them to your asshole for dinner!" Tayuya aggressively huffed, crossing her arms to make a point, even going as far as to close her eyes as if done with the conversation. A deadly silence echoed around the room, the red head opened her chocolate eyes to look at the stunned blonde who was staring at her in disbelief, clearly terrified.  
>"What? Did I say something wrong?" She questioned innocently, Naruto looked at her in confusion,<br>"S-scary..." He murmured with fear and shot over to the kitchen to plate up breakfast, causing Tayuya to laugh and shake her head at his antics.

She felt herself with a pleasant smile creeping over her face, then frowned suddenly irritated,  
>'<em>Tch...I'm in a fucking enemy village! I shouldn't be enjoying this!'<em> The ex-sound nin growled in frustration, something about the blonde just made her not care about anything of that nature and a part of her was seriously enjoying the peace, the feeling of someone being there for her. Her frown deepened, Tayuya also knew that it was too good to be true, there had to be reasoning behind all this, maybe Naruto was simply part of a huge plan that she wasn't aware of.

She closed her eyes sadly, hating to admit it to herself but,  
>'<em>That would really fuckin' hurt, I should at least be more careful.'<em> The red head considered with new found determination; she let the annoyed scowl fade from her features as she watched over the oblivious blonde,  
>'<em>If he wants to win me over he's going to have to do alot better than this!'<em> She felt herself slowly weaken at the blonde's smile as he brought over her food, causing her to unknowingly let out a soft growl, feeling conflicted, Tayuya knew the blonde was doing everything he could to make her stay pleasant and that's what worried her most.

"Woah! Relax girl, I'm just here to give you your food okay?" He teased as she continued to snarl  
>"Are you calling me an animal!?" The fiery kunoichi roared back angrily, doing her best to hold her frown and displeased glare as her chocolate eyes met his startled sapphires,<br>"Huh? Of course not, just making a joke!" He said with one of his stupid foxy grins lighting up his face with a warmth that caused her to waver slightly, before she lost her strength she continued  
>"Yeah well it's not fucking funny!" She instantly peeled her eyes away from his hurt look, choosing to glare down at her delicately prepared breakfast, the fact that he had arranged her chicken into a smiley face upon her rice only made her stomach twist with a feeling of guilt.<br>'_Such a damn loser!'_ Tayuya argued with herself as she saw the childish display, she began quickly shoving the food into her mouth as if trying to kill the happy face on her plate.

"Heh, heh...sorry, I just really like to make people laugh." The blonde replied softly, she looked up at him expecting to see his face torn with hurt, to her surprise though, he was the picture of happiness, a face splitting grin was stretched across his features and his eyes were shut tight in a laughing manner.

Naruto got up quietly before she could even say something in response, he'd stumped her with his smile at her actions, the silence had become awkward but seeing him carefully feeding his plants without another word to her only reminded her of yesterday when she had hurt his feelings. Tayuya knew that he was thinking of how he could make things better, the plants were merely buying him time.

'_Thanks for the meal..._' She thought to herself, frustrated, as the words wouldn't leave her mouth  
><em>'Just say it!...ughh..fuck! Why is this so difficult!?<em> _I hate this place!'_ She angrily clenched her hands into fists as she warred with herself, the red head was beginning to hate all of these new feelings, before coming to Konoha she only had one setting to worry about, 'Pissed off.' Now she was struggling to deal with kindness and companionship, it was totally new to her yet she couldn't help feeling weak for enjoying it, she shouldn't care at all, he was just some blonde kid. Her eyes widened in surprise as she heard someone carefully slump down on the couch next to her, the sound of running water had only now reached her ears.

Naruto wordlessly picked her up carrying her into the bathroom, just like yesterday he dressed her in a soft cream fluffy towel and helped her to strip off then carefully lifted her into the soothing hot water causing her to hold back a breath of relief. Naruto then left the room in silence, still not sure what he could say to make the circumstances between the two any brighter,  
>'<em>Maybe she just wants some space, this whole village thing is new to her I guess...' <em>He thought to himself trying his best to be understanding as the creaky white bathroom door closed behind him, he walked over to the faithful brown couch, slumping down glumly while reading over Tsunade's medical list, looking up and down the sheet to make sure he was caring for her accordingly.

He felt his brow furrow, glaring somewhat angrily at the sheet of paper as he thought of his feelings,  
>'<em>Maybe i'm not the right person for this kind of mission Obaa-chan...'<em> He thought sadly to himself as he peered over the document she had written for him, his grip tightened on it as he thought about the people he knew, the way they treated him and muttered about him behind his back no matter what he did to try and earn their respect. He clutched his eyes shut attempting to crush the feeling that was washing over him, he always tried his best and no matter what he did he just couldn't do it right.

'_I'll just have to do better! No one said this was going to be easy! Hell she doesn't even have to like it and I don't have to be her friend, this is a mission and I won't disappoint you Obaa-chan!' _He refuelled his determination, snapping out of his sombre thoughts, alone in his apartment it was easy to let them get the best of him, this was his place to be weak, to give himself a break and admit to himself that actually the crap in his life _did_ hurt, but it was okay to feel that way as it made him more determined to prove everyone that he was just as dependable as anyone else.

"Oiiii!" The weak cry from the bathroom shook him from his thoughts, the blonde had lost track of time but now Naruto knew he had to try his best, with a renewed smile he headed over to the door, taking a deep breath before pushing it open to look at her wet figure.  
>"How was it? Was the water okay?" He offered, attempting to break the ice as he scooped her out of the bath carefully, gentle pink dusting his cheeks due to the situation, though she just folded her arms around her chest and closed her eyes as her head fell against his chest, huffing in displeasure.<br>"It was fine I guess." The red head replied with finality, hoping to end the conversation dead in its tracks, a deep crimson washed over her face as she felt him looking over her half naked form, this only caused the blonde to feel a grin form on his features, he was used to Sasuke cutting off conversations so her attempt did little to shut him up.

"Great! As soon as you're ready we can go out and get some fresh air." He announced sweetly to her as he carefully placed her down in 'her spot' on the tired old couch, she shuffled against the cosy brown furniture as began to dress herself.  
>"Hmph. What if I don't want to '<em>get some fresh airrr~' <em>" She angrily spat back at him, mocking his cheery tone, his eyes narrowed dangerously as he felt his frown come back with force,  
>"Then I can leave your ass here and go myself." He replied softly, his tone icy cold, the kind that demanded respect, a voice that could command even the strongest of ninja but it wasn't this that shocked her, the red head's eyes widened in surprise at the hurt in his voice, he didn't even shout his response but it would of probably scared her less if he had just angrily screamed at her.<p>

Tayuya felt that familiar sinking feeling in her stomach, her eyes locked on her knees, she had dressed herself while mocking him and now she couldn't even pull her eyes up to look the blonde, her face twisted in frustration as she thought over her actions. She didn't understand anything anymore, why she was treating him this way, why she was pushing him away from her, all she knew was that he was just going to be another person that she would lose. Just like all the rest.

She looked up weakly as she heard the bedroom door slam shut, he was dressed in his orange jacket and ready to leave with or without her, Naruto could feel her looking at him though he didn't turn to meet her gaze, he wasn't going to let her walk all over him, not in his own damned home! He felt sorry for her situation, sympathetic and of course he wanted to help, to be her friend and be close to her, the Uzumaki even found himself wondering why things couldn't just be like yesterday night, enjoying each other's company, hell even when she first woke up she seemed cheery. Naruto however, was definitely not the type to let people push him around. He was as stubborn as it comes, his bickering with a certain raven was proof of that and though he was kind, caring and usually gentle, he had always been pretty quick to bite back if anyone was treating him badly.

Tayuya wanted to apologize, she just couldn't, something about herself was making it impossible to say the simple words, the red head was again thinking it was awful to see him hurt or upset, it wasn't like when she mocked or cursed at other people who'd just get pissed off with her, it was completely different. He was there _for_ her, the only reason he was doing any of this was _for_ her, Tayuya knew that she was just throwing all his hard effort right back in his face like she was some prisoner of war.  
>'<em>Why do I always have to be so difficult...I'm stuck here, in this shithole, even if I hate it then it won't change anything...so maybe, I guess...'<em> She reprimanded herself sadly as she eyed the blonde longingly as he moved towards the front door of the apartment.

"I!...I want to come too." She cried out initially yet her voice weakly drifted off into barely a whisper as she lost her confidence, surprisingly, the blonde turned on his heel, questioning her motives as his cerulean eyes pierced her smooth chocolate orbs. The ex-sound nin felt the crushing weight of his stare, it took everything she had just to force herself not to look away. After a few seconds, seemingly pleased, the blonde moved over to her, crouching down delicately besides the tired brown couch ready to carry her in a piggyback.  
><em><br>_She wrapped her arms around his broad shoulders, marvelling in the touch once more as she let her arms snake around him while he lifted her wordlessly, carrying her from the aging couch to the sunny outside world. In silence, Naruto locked the door, the sound of the key turning felt deafening in their moment of quiet as the two exited the apartment. The gentle sun beat down upon them and the Hokage-wannabe noticed the red head shuffling around on his back. His face the picture of surprise as he felt Tayuya's nose softly tickle the back of his neck. A light dusting of pink washed over his cheeks as he felt a strange warmth rise through his stomach but the blonde managed to calm himself, assuming she was merely getting comfortable.

Tayuya couldn't help attempting to show the Uzumaki that she was sorry in some way, she tried snuggling into his neck, hoping he'd realise it was a hug or an act of affection, just to be sure, her arms tightened around him a little. Naruto stopped momentarily as he carried her down the steps of his apartment, he knew for sure she was hugging him from behind and couldn't help the small smile that crept across his features, he let out a soft sigh, the way she could switch behaviour so quickly was kinda cute. Not that he was brave enough to let her know.

They reached the bottom of the secluded apartment building causing Naruto to unroll a sealing scroll, with a flare of chakra and a puff of smoke, the dreaded wheelchair appeared by his side.  
>"Sorry Tayu-chan, you gotta ride in your chair, I know you can't sit upright for too long but Obaa-chan's instructions said it would keep your back in check! Well something like that anyway..." He spoke apologetically before mumbling, a little unsure as he scratched his forehead with a finger in slight confusion, obviously struggling to recall the details of the medical instructions Tsunade had left for him.<br>"Mhh...that's okay, as long as it's not for too long. Shit gets painful." She replied flatly with a forced calmness, doing her best to hold a good attitude, she hated the damned chair though, it made her feel more like a burden than she already did, causing her to scowl in frustration.

Naruto had to admit he missed her warmth as he delicately placed her into her new form of transport, his back now felt as if there was something missing, almost like he had forgotten to wear a backpack. It wasn't long before the two of them had reached the village centre. To Naruto it wouldn't be acceptable to simply allow Tayuya to stay in the dark, uneducated with no one to show her the way, no that simply wouldn't do, he was going to enlighten her.

"Here we are! The world's best ramen!" Naruto announced happily as he scooped up Tayuya from her chair then gently placed her down on one of the customer stools, sealing away her wheelchair as he did, the red head didn't complain, to her the place was cosy with a relaxed, lazy atmosphere, she much preferred something like this than a high end restaurant full of arrogant money grabbers that took life too seriously, she just wasn't into that 'sophisticated' life style. Though the way some people were shooting her and Naruto curious looks was really starting to bug her, it was like they had seen a couple of ghosts or something.

"Oh, Naruto-kun! Lovely to see you as always!" Ayame chirped merrily as the boy grinned up at her, sitting down alongside the feisty red head, who had for some reason folded her arms, huffing in annoyance as she heard the girl welcome them with a cheerful tone, Tayuya presumed it was simply customer service yet it irritated her all the same.  
>"Ayame-nee-chan! I'm here on a super important mission!" Naruto announced with no small amount of excitement, Tayuya's brows rose slightly with curiosity, she wondered if he was referring to her as <em>super important<em>. Heat began to rise in her cheeks but she quickly shot it down, choosing to glare at the shop assistant instead.

'_Tch, the hell she think she's doin' actin so nice, bet she's about to bleed us for all the cash we got!'_ Tayuya fumed safely in her thoughts, she didn't want to push any more trouble on Naruto at the moment, she still felt a little guilty for her actions so for now, she would behave.  
>"Ohhhh~ ? You couldn't mean <em>that<em> super important mission could you Naruto-kun?" The serving girl inquired happily, leaning over the counter with an affectionate smile as she enjoyed the blonde's visit. A certain gleam appeared in the young Uzumaki's eye that told her everything she needed to know.

"Right! This is Tayuya's first visit to the greatest ramen store in the whole world! Two of your finest Naruto specials please Nee-chan!" Naruto yelled enthusiastically which earned a deadpan look from the red head sitting beside him, Ayame couldn't help but let out a soft giggle.  
>"Aye, aye~ Coming right up!" She replied sweetly with a mock salute, disappearing towards the back of the stall to prepare their meals, Naruto sat happily, barely being able to contain his joy, a cheeky grin had ripped open his face while he leant back, resting his head on the back of his hands lazily.<p>

"This place? The best ramen in the world? If that were true it would be fuckin' huge!" Tayuya piped up in disbelief, to her it was cosy and charming yes but she had to admit, she had her doubts, Naruto whirled around on his stool, a wounded look on his face as he spoke in defence,  
>"Hey! Hey! Don't be like that Tayu-chan! It's like that thing old man Hokage used to say! ...What was it again...something about a dirty diamond being really awesome when it was cleaned! Tch well it doesn't matter about that right!? Just try it, you'll see it's the best!" He persevered, having to hold his chin in deep thought, trying as he may to recall the third's wording, unfortunately for Naruto, he delivered it without infinite wisdom that the elder seemed to achieve.<p>

"It's a diamond in the rough." Tayuya corrected, clearly unimpressed, still she wasn't complaining, she didn't remember the last time she had ever eaten out at a restaurant, such a small thing meant was a big deal to her, it was interesting, she had to admit the blonde's faith in the place was starting to sway her. A warmth surfaced in her stomach spreading soothing heat across her body,  
>'<em>Heh, I guess this is kinda like a date. He even called me that fuckin dumb ass pet name again...' <em>She thought innocently, her mind had wandered as she worked her best to ignore the blonde's contagious smiles.

"Yeah, yeah! That was it! Man you and Jiji would of got along great!" He cheered happily, not noticing his red head partner in crime flinch at his words, she had been one of Orochimaru's assistants in killing the beloved leader, not that she felt like reminding her caretaker, suddenly her mind snapped to attention as realisation hit her a second time.  
>'<em>Wait!? This is like a fuckin date!'<em> She confirmed, immediately alarmed by her situation as it clicked together in her mind, she blushed a deep crimson, glaring at the floor, letting her hair cover her embarrassed features as she slugged the blonde on his arm, making him yelp a injured 'Ow!' as he quickly snapped his attention back to her.

"D-don't fuckin' call me Tayu-chan out here, Shithead!" She muttered quietly to him, to her amazement Naruto's only retaliation was a soft huff at her expense, it sounded warm and carefree as if he enjoyed seeing this side of her, which of course, only challenged her feelings even more. She was ready to snap her face upwards and bite his head off when the waitress arrived.  
>"Here we are two Naruto specials! Enjoy~" Ayame charmingly announced, rescuing the blonde as the enticing scent of the freshly prepared ramen caught Tayuya's attention, she couldn't deny it certainly smelled like it might just be the best ramen in the world. Would she give him the satisfaction of knowing this? Absolutely not.<p>

She felt Naruto's eyes glued to her as she gingerly lifted her chopsticks closer to her lips, the mouth watering noodles were quickly scooped up with an undignified slurping noise, Tayuya reviewed the tasty treat in her mouth. Her eyes widened in wonderment as the simple meal bursted with flavour, it was a taste that could only be achieved with loving care. She let a 'mmm!' escape her, then suddenly shovelled the ramen into her trap with a pace that would give any Uzumaki a run for their money. The ex-sound nin didn't even seem to care that the broth was flying everywhere.

Naruto's heart jumped for joy, a proud smirk dressing his features as he gave a hearty chuckle  
>"See! What did I tell you!? Its the best in the whole world!" He boomed with pride, puffing out his chest making a show of himself, he couldn't help but smile mischievously when he heard Ayame in the back of the stall giggling at his behaviour.<br>"Can it, Asshole! I'm not gunna waste my time talkin' to you when I can be eatin' food like this!" She roared dismissively leaning over again once more, she almost dipped her face in the bowl as she unceremoniously enjoyed the dish.

Naruto turned to his own meal with a softer more genuine smile, it'd been a long time since anyone had really sat down with him and eaten here since Iruka or Kakashi. He would never admit he was disappointed that they never shared his excitement in downing bowl after bowl of delicious ramen as fast as humanly possible. Granny Tsunade had taken him to a dango stand a few times, as she didn't really share his love of ramen, it was there that he had been amazed at just how fast the Hokage and a certain snake lady could polish off the sweet dumplings but it wasn't really the same as what he was feeling now.

He stole a glance at Tayuya, something about the way she just didn't seem to care about what people thought of her, really made him feel happy, he felt as if he understood that. She wasn't frightened to be herself around him and she shared moments like this with him, it made him feel really warm and safe as if wrapped in a caring embrace. To some this might not be much, but to Naruto it was huge. He had no one, his memories of friends were his prized possessions, this was no doubt being added to his collection. A merry chuckle escaped him as he went to destroying all traces of his own ramen.

"Ahhh~ Man! That was good shit!" Tayuya declared pleasantly as she sat up from her meal, wiping her face with her arms, the red head leant back lazily, stretching comfortably while yawning. She smirked happily while patting her full belly to show her enjoyment.  
>"Awhh, well I'm glad you enjoyed it!...Tayuuuu-channn~" Ayame teased playfully while retreating to the back of the stall, giggling mischievously as she made her escape, the red head felt her blood boil, her cheeks lighting up a deep crimson as she slammed both of her fists on the counter, leaning over into the stall to shout back at the elder girl.<p>

"W-Whatever you creepy old bat! How 'bout you keep your ass back there and work on noodlin'!" Tayuya spat in distaste, clearly angered by the girls teasing, she didn't care that the brunette was only around seventeen, no woman liked to be called old!  
>"Noodlin'?" Naruto replied incredulously, staring at the red head with a barely contained smirk, his amused smile soon spread and before long he was laughing loudly at Tayuya's expense, banging on the counter in an attempt to control himself.<br>"That was the worst insult I've ever heard!" He declared loudly between crazed laughter, only infuriating the hot tempered kunoichi sitting by his side, a deep frown made its way across her face, twitching with rage as she brought her trembling fist up into the air.  
>"Yeah!? Well if you don't shut your dumb ass mouth I'll be noodlin' you!" She roared in an attempt to sound threatening, to her dismay though, Naruto found this even funnier, loosing himself as his laughter became too much making him fall backwards from his bar stool to the unforgiving ground below, holding his ribs as they ached from his outburst.<p>

"Grrrr...get your ass up you rat! We're finished here so we can fuckin' leave, got better stuff we could be doin' than watchin' your stupid ass roll around in the dirt!" Tayuya spat angrily, her annoyance clear in her words as the blonde righted himself, dusting off his outfit as he held his pained sides, he hadn't laughed like that in a long time.  
>"Right, right! Whatever you say! Later Ayame-nee-chan! We're outta here!" He happily called into the stall only to hear the waitress shout right back, peering out of the kitchen to meet his gaze as she did,<br>"Ohhh~? Well make sure you bring Tayu-chan along with you next time! I don't want to be a lonely Obaa-san now do I?" She merrily mocked with a fake hurt tone, going along with Tayuya's insult, much to the red head's displeasure. It seemed like Tayuya would never stop growling, if Ayame hadn't served her she would of thought there was a tiger on the loose in the village.

Still the angered kunoichi couldn't help the small smirk that began to dress her features, Tayuya realised she had felt so relaxed and care free, her mind had really forgotten about all her troubles or hardships, the red head could see why her blonde caretaker frequented this cosy little stall, it was an amazing escape. She peered out into the distance of the street, squinting as she recognised something. Tayuya gave an evil smile as a certain pink haired ninja walked towards their direction, though she was still too far to notice them.

"Oi! Asshole! It's cold as fuck out here, give me your jacket!" Tayuya suddenly declared with a cunning smirk, she was clearly up to something but Naruto had no idea what, he looked at her in confusion,  
>"What? Are you crazy!? It's the middle of summer, its gorgeous out here!" He frowned in disbelief while glancing up at the proud sun in the sky, the weather in Konoha today was lovely, the idea of being cold just simply didn't make sense to him, maybe it was a girl thing?<br>"Then you won't mind giving me your jacket shithead!" She angrily retorted, of course she was feeling the heat of the sun bearing down on them but the look on the pinkette's face would definitely be worth it.  
>"Fine, fine whatever, I'm just glad someone is willing to wear it! You'd be surprised how many people don't think orange is a great colour!" He replied with a cheery smile, the red head shot him a dead pan look but didn't comment, as she dressed herself in his surprisingly comfortable orange coat. As soon as Tayuya finished putting it on she felt a slight flush of colour wash over her cheeks at wearing his clothes, the fact that it smelled just like him really didn't help her senses; what alarmed her most was that she was enjoying the sensation, a gentle upwards curve had even made its way across her lips.<p>

Naruto felt his cheeks brighten also, he had to resist the urge to tell her just how adorable she looked wearing his jacket with that tiny delicate smile plastered on her porcelain face, doing his best to fend off his embarrassment he snapped to attention when she suddenly spoke.  
>"An' don't think i'm goin' back in that fuckin dumb ass chair! If I wanted to watch a wheel spin all day I'd buy a god damn hamster!" She huffed in annoyance, opening up her arms towards Naruto, silently demanding that he carry her, though to onlookers it looked more like she was waiting to be hugged.<p>

The blonde happily obliged, picking her up in a piggy back fashion, he didn't really trust his voice to speak out against her right now, he feared he might stutter or stammer similar to Hinata as his cheeks continued to redden at Tayuya's new look. As he picked her up he was shocked to feel her once again cuddle into him, hugging him from behind, it may of been his imagination but he could of sworn he heard her let out a content sigh. The Uzumaki shook his head in disbelief, maybe his time with Jiraiya was starting to effect his common sense when it came to women.

Tayuya was glad she could hide her deeply crimson face in Naruto's back, she couldn't believe that she had even managed to produce such a girly sounding noise as she instinctively cuddled into him while he carried her.  
>'<em>I can't fuckin help it! It's nice okay!?'<em> She roared inwardly as if arguing with herself over her own feelings, she felt like she needed to excuse her actions, as if someone was judging her for them,  
>'<em>Besides what else can I do!? I gotta get used to bein' carried this way so I might as well fuckin enjoy it!'<em> She continued to desperately reason with herself, though she couldn't fight off just how obviously fake her excuses sounded, she didn't have time to lose herself in such thoughts however,  
>'<em>Alright! Pinkie is comin' our way, see how she likes this!'<em> Tayuya thought evilly as Sakura approached them, after seeing the cherry blossom girl hug the blonde, the ex-sound kunoichi would never admit it but her distaste for the girl had sky rocketed. It seemed however that Sakura wasn't alone this time, an upbeat blonde haired kunoichi walked at her side, the two of them happily gossiping as they came closer to Naruto and herself.

"Oh! Sakura-chan! What are you doing here?!" Naruto chirped happily, the excitement clear in his voice, the innocent blonde couldn't help but rub the back of his neck sheepishly when Sakura gave him a gentle smile,  
>"Hey Naruto! Why are you wearing your jacket around your neck? It looks so silly." She greeted kindly, a giggle following up her reply as she hadn't seem to notice Tayuya who was hidden away, snuggling into the Uzumaki's back, the red head decided to make herself known.<br>"'Sup Pinkie." She spat casually, marvelling in the cherry blossom girl's momentary frown, Sakura managed to right herself, plastering a well concealed fake smile across her features,  
>"Good to see you Tayuya, I hope your legs are feeling a little better, Tsunade-sama told me of your condition since i'm trying to be a medic ninja myself! If Naruto ever needs any extra help don't be shy, I could use the experience!" The happy-go-lucky pinkette offered merrily, a small glint of excitement in her eye, it seemed that she was taking her new found ambition rather seriously.<br>"Tch, I'll try to remember that." The red head snapped calmly, for some reason it lacked some of her usual venom as she glanced over Sakura's kind, caring expression,  
>'<em>God! What the hell is wrong with these people! None of them can go five fuckin' minutes without trying to help someone! It's gross!' <em>Tayuya raged to herself, her brow furrowing in confusion as a pained look came about her, she realised that more than likely, she was the odd one out here,  
>'<em>Maybe it's just me who's weird...what if its just me that can't act that way? Hmph! Why do I fucking care anyways...' <em>The red head huffed in self confliction, she shoved the feelings aside and buried her head into the back of Naruto's neck, enjoying that surge of warmth that lit up her stomach that made everything feel better.

"Oi! Naruto! Aren't you going to introduce me?" Ino Yamanaka questioned with a flick of her bangs, running her hand through it to remove it from her face, a look of recognition washed over Naruto  
>"Ah-haha, sorry Ino-chan..." He started weakly, he never was good with manners and the sort,<br>"Tayu-chan this is Ino Yamanaka she was in my class at the ninja academy!" He declared cheerfully as if it was his best attempt, the blonde girl in question lit up with a cheeky smile causing Sakura to immediately sigh, she knew where this was going.  
>"Well I expected 'The prettiest woman in all of Konoha' ...but I guess that will do~ " She winked playfully causing Naruto's cheeks to become dusted with a light pink shade, the boy still wasn't used to positive attention, he had to admit it still made him a little nervous when he didn't know how to respond. Sakura clicked her tongue at her best friend's antics.<br>"Whatever Ino-pig, I'm sure Naruto has better things to do than listen to you flatter yourself!" The pinkette chuckled enjoying her company, until she saw the red head's arms pull her teammate closer to her, wrapping him up in a tighter embrace.  
>"Damn right he does! We gotta get this asshole into shape! He'll be kickin' ass in no time after i'm done with him you'll see!" Tayuya declared proudly, puffing out her chest in an attempt to look like she held authority, to her delight, the blonde carrying her lit up with the biggest foxy grin she'd seen yet.<p>

"Woah no way Tayu-chan! Are you gunna help me train?!" He yelled happily, clearly not used to someone taking time to spend with him or help him unless he had begged them for their attention, she gave a small smirk, though it looked more like a delicate, happy little smile, Tayuya insisted that it was definitely a bad ass all knowing smirk.  
>"Damn right, if you have to look out for me then you better be god damn hard to kill!" She roared with her usual attitude though her caretaker merely chuckled merrily, the two Konoha kunoichi stared at the two of them in disbelief.<br>"W-well...we better let you get to it then!" Sakura interrupted awkwardly, stammering a little in surprise, for some reason, after her visit to Naruto's apartment, she didn't expect the two to be so well...close. It reminded her painfully of how Sasuke had been with Naruto and seeing the blonde being cuddled so contently made her feel a strange twisting sensation in her stomach.

"Right right! We better get going to right Sakura?" Ino quickly agreed, plotting an escape for the two of leaf kunoichi, Tayuya just shrugged her shoulders in a bored manner, she didn't really care about either of them; Naruto chuckled awkwardly giving a small wave,  
>"Right! Well it was nice to see you guys! We'll cya around!" He said with a genuine smile, Sakura couldn't help but notice just how happy he seemed, causing her brow to furrow a little, something that surprised even herself.<p>

'_How can he be so happy? Sasuke-kun is still gone...well, knowing Naruto I bet he is also thinking about him, he never lets anyone see when he's upset. Oh! I know! Maybe its cause he doesn't have to be on his own anymore, yeah that's it! For someone who's lived alone all his life it must be really nice to have someone stay with him!' _Sakura nodded her head with satisfaction, it all made so much sense now and the twisting feeling in her stomach subsided, allowing her to feel like her normal calm and cheery self again.

Tayuya turned around, hanging on to Naruto with just one arm wrapped around his neck, she leant back off him, waving to the leaf kunoichi with a cocky smirk,  
>"Bye-bye~" The red head mocked as she left with her blonde caretaker, the way she was casually acting so arrogant had Sakura growling softly with annoyance, even Ino seemed to be affected<br>"Grr...who does she think she is!? Oi forehead! Are you really gunna let her go around snuggling up to your team mate like that!? She's even wearing his jacket, and worst of all, she actually made it look good! Naruto's jacket!" Ino yelled in disbelief, her annoyance getting the better of her as she ranted to Sakura, the two of them had started to make their way back to the Yamanaka flower store while they chatted.  
>"What do you mean Ino?! Naruto can be like that with whoever he wants idiot! Did you see how happy he looked? ...It's kind of sweet, besides! She has broken legs Ino-pig, its not like she wanted to be lifted around like that, have a little sympathy..." Sakura shot back hoping to explain things in a way that even Ino would understand, sometimes it was difficult for the blonde to get something through her thick skull.<p>

"Ha! I saw the way you looked all confused! You can't play innocent with me forehead!" Ino spat with a harmless glare, bickering with Sakura had to be one of her favourite pass times,  
>"Hmph! I was thinking about how Naruto was able to feel better about...well you know...Sasuke-kun...but I guess its cause well, you know...Naruto had to live alone all his life, but now he has someone staying with him for a while." The pinkette replied softly, dancing around with her wording, she was going over a lot of delicate subjects here, thankfully Ino give her a solemn look of understanding and said no more about it, though she wasn't done teasing her pink haired friend.<br>"Still that doesn't explain why you looked like you wished you were the one being carried!" The blonde happily chirped, tossing Sakura a teasing wink causing her to growl angrily,  
>"Shut it Ino-pig! There's no way I was thinking that!" The cherry blossom glared with a light blush, causing her best friend to cackle at her, laughing in a mocking tone,<br>"Don't look at me like that forehead! Just cause I have blonde hair and blue eyes doesn't mean I can fill in for your Naru-kunn~" Ino said in a sing song voice, clearly getting a rise out of her oldest friend, Sakura's fist raised with aggression, she looked about ready to murder a certain Yamanaka.  
>"When I'm done with you, you're gunna need carrying!" She roared violently, causing Ino to squeal in terror, leaping to the nearest roof top as the two began to jump around Konoha together.<p>

Tayuya slumped lazily backwards against the bark of the tree she was laying against, she'd been watching over Naruto for only a few minutes and she was already seeing his taijutsu was very obviously lacking, it seemed as if he had learned the style completely backwards, every move, every strike, seemed to make his movements ten times harder to execute than they should of been, though she was impressed by his speed and the force behind the blows, it even made her curious of just how much faster the blonde would be moving if he wasn't impaired.

"Man, you really suck don't ya?" The red head commented without grace causing the Uzumaki to growl at her in annoyance, he whipped around to face her with a deep frown as he rubbed his neck,  
>"Tch! I thought you said you were going to help me, not insult me!" Naruto whined childishly, folding his arms across his stomach and pouting only made him look even more immature.<br>"I will asshole! Listen, we need to go over all the kata's for your taijutsu, except that there's no way i'd fuckin know that style so here's what we're gunna do. Now listen good cause i'm only gunna explain this once." She quickly explained, Naruto seemed to buy it, leaning over slightly to focus on her words with the best of his ability, he had always been like this when anyone offered him their help, he'd give it his all and then some.

"I'm gunna tell you how you need to stand for the snake style taijutsu that Orochimaru teaches, this way you'll know more about how the faggot Uchiha fights if you ever run in to him again and since you have kinda came up with your own shit show version of taijutsu, we'll work on making it fluid, like an actual fighting style, otherwise it will just keep slowing you down." Tayuya calmly tutored, making the blonde look at her in a new appreciative light, he gave a cheery smile,  
>"Wow Tayu-chan! You never told me you were so smart!" He happily complimented, causing his new sensei's cheeks to light up a similar shade to her hair, then she of course, growled angrily at him,<br>"Still...what do you mean it will keep slowing me down? This is how I was taught in the academy even if I did get a pretty bad grade...hehheh." The blonde questioned nervously, he had taken to his habit of scratching the back of his head sheepishly, trying to look as sincere as possible.

"Well looks like either Konoha really fuckin' suck at taijutsu or some asshole was teachin' you bad on purpose, still your taijutsu sucks, you'd be way better if you knew how to move properly, i'm surprised you can even fight without falling over yourself how you are right now!" Tayuya lectured, somewhat enjoying her new authoritative role, the way Naruto was looking at her so attentively, listening to her every word like it was the will of a god, it made her feel proud and empowered...and a little embarrassed though she'd rather die than admit that.

"Mmmh well, some of the teachers at the academy really hated me..." Naruto offered with a pained chuckle that was much too forced, the red head flinched slightly, she saw the hurt on his face.  
>"Would it really make such a difference Tayu-chan!? I really need to get stronger!" He lit up once more, his face the picture of determination as he grinned down happily to his red head partner in crime. Tayuya give a sly smirk of her own.<br>"Damn right it will! Who do you think I am asshole? Don't expect my training to be easy though! Orochimaru will be training Sasuke and that fuckin' snake bastard has a lot of experience in making powerful ninja, that means we'll be usin' what you got as our advantage." The red head puffed out her chest making her look full of herself, yet Naruto had to admit she seemed to know what she was talking about, though he wasn't exactly a good judge of that.  
>"What I've got?" He asked with a puzzled expression, he had closed his eyes while scratching his head, seemingly deep in thought, he wasn't sure what his roommate was referring too,<br>"Damn right! We're gunna work your ass all day n' night! Orochimaru told us all you got crazy fox demon stamina and since you got no missions, you got plenty of time! Don't expect some lame ass work out for a couple hours, if you got as much a stamina as that snake bastard seemed to think you do then, we'll be trainin' as soon as we've finished breakfast till you can barely get us home!" Tayuya smirked with excitement, she was going to take this blonde knucklehead to a whole new level and it would give her something to kill all of her time as well as ignore the worries of her new lifestyle.

A wash of determination spread over Naruto, he gave the kunoichi a fierce nod of agreement,  
>"Right! I'll do my best Tayu-chan, I never give up, that's a promise! If you're gunna do your best with all this awesome teaching then i'll just have to try twice as hard to make you proud!" He declared with a foxy grin and a really lame thumbs up gesture causing the red head to snigger at his expense, still, she couldn't help but want to explode with all these happy, warm feelings she'd been experiencing lately.<p>

'_I'm not gunna fuckin' deny it! I'm not dumb! This stuff...being normal...being accepted, treated kindly...' _She thought to herself then took a glance up at the blonde who was contently smiling at her  
>'<em>Seeing someone smile because of me, just for me, it all makes me feel so...special.' <em>She let her small delicate smile tug at her lips, it was barely even noticeable she imagined, when she saw Naruto's smile turn into an overly large foxy grin she knew that he could see her smiling but the red head couldn't bring herself to care.  
>"Damn right asshole! If i'm gunna be stuck livin' with you then you gotta be able to look out for the both of us!" She declared with ambition only to receive another fierce nod and a 'Right!' from the gentle blonde, the kunoichi had already thought of multiple training methods for her new student; with her intelligence she was able to keep up with Shikamaru, which, unfortunately for Naruto, meant she knew exactly how to work him into the ground.<p>

The two sat in one of Konoha's most popular training grounds, she had insisted on going somewhere quieter but Naruto wouldn't budge, he had told her that he enjoyed running into his friends and being able to take a break along with them before he not so quietly announced that he also liked to spy on their training to get ideas for his own. Tayuya smirked evilly, promising the blonde that next time they train he would want a training ground as private as possible, so no one could see him suffer. The blonde suppressed a shudder at that but the two worked on going over every single taijutsu stance they could.

Time seemed to race by, hours upon hours passed and soon the day had went from early noon to around six pm, the red head estimated due to the sun's setting position in the horizon, most of the shinobi that had been using the colossal training grounds had all packed up and left, leaving only a few dedicated members here and there, working through the orange glow of midday. Tayuya had to admit it was beautiful, it was the kind of serenity that made a person appreciate everything they had, the well cut grass below her, the surrounding proud trees that filled the air with a scent of earth and soil, and the gentle lazy summer sun that melted across the sky, painting in a soothing orange colour.

Already Naruto was showing drastic signs of improvement, of course he was nowhere close to correcting his movements and fixing his taijutsu in just one day, that would be absurd. He did however, pick up the basics of each stance which allowed him to see the flaws in his own movements, the fluid and graceful snake style movements were much to delicate for the blonde, causing him to mix up his style with the new one Tayuya had shown him.

This equalled in him have a style that was nimble based around speed and evasion but instead of needing to be accurate and graceful, the moves had been replaced with his usual style with some modifications, instead of simply throwing his punches and kicks hoping to destroy any resistance like he normally did, his moves now contained firm, pronounced strikes that struck with purpose. Alot of the new style worked around using the evasive snake style to dodge blows and continue that momentum to power up his brash, cannon like strikes, now his punches and kicks looked like they had a certain stiffness to them, another of Tayuya's genius ideas.

She had told him to use what he had learned when walking trees and then apply small amounts to the limb that was being used to strike, for a kick, empowering his legs meant he could move faster, flow with the movement better, become more fluid but he could also force chakra into his foot, meaning if his enemy was going to block or parry then the impact would be much sharper, meaning it would become increasingly difficult for his opponent to continuously defend, not only that but if Naruto's control on Kyuubi slipped and he used the demon chakra, it would most likely burn his enemy too.

"You got plenty of chakra! So you don't gotta worry about pissin' it away on taijutsu, hell you probably can't even feel the drain!" Tayuya had vehemently told him while they developed the style, Naruto only beamed happily at her as his new movements felt swifter and more deadly, he knew it was just the start but that only made him even more excited, after removing his stunted, sabotaged academy style taijutsu Naruto could already feel that moving around in taijutsu forms felt much less strained, he wondered if he would be able to keep up with Lee after he had really started to master his forms.

"We gotta name it!" Naruto cheerfully declared at the smirking red head, she was happy that he listened to her so devoutly it made her feel important, a feeling she could really start to enjoy,  
>"Tch, it's just kicking and punching, Asshole! Why you gotta make things more complicated than they have to be?" Tayuya scoffed at his childish antics, though she didn't really mind, he was working hard so she couldn't really complain, it was always nice to see the excitement in a pupil.<br>"I know! It's like...really tough and firm, but its also still like that other snake style, we should call it the 'Solid Snake'!" Naruto declared with enthusiasm that only caused the kunoichi to roll her eyes, though for some reason it felt like she'd become alarmed or that there was an '!' over her head...she shook off the peculiar feeling and sighed heavily, Konoha must be having a weird effect on her.

"Oii! Naruto!" A brunette announced loudly while waving a hand high into the air, slowly walking over with a small white puppy yipping happily by the side of his feet, its tail wagging enthusiastically as they made their way over to the blonde.  
>"Kiba! What are you doing here?" Naruto smiled happily, he was glad to see that his friend had recovered from the mission to retrieve Sasuke, alot of his close friends had suffered in their attempt to bring back the raven, the sound four had been no push over, especially when Kimimaro had shown up and made it five. At some points it looked like a few of them would never make it, Choji, Kiba, even Neji, were on the brink of death when they returned to Konoha.<p>

"Heh! You know me! It takes more than that to keep us down, right Akamaru?!" Kiba bellowed obnoxiously, leaving the white puppy to happily bark in agreement while running around Naruto's legs, pestering the blonde for his attention. Naruto laughed while petting the small nin-dog, he had always loved being around animals, it was such a calming feeling, well except for Orochimaru's snakes in the forest of death...that was anything _but_ calming.

"Glad to see you're back on your feet!" Naruto chirped merrily, looking over to his dog boy friend who was now grinning with pride letting out a 'heh heh' while shrugging his shoulders,  
>"You know how it is! Me n' Akamaru just came out here to get back into our training, Hokage-sama told us we needed to take it easy before we can go back to our team training but we'll be ready in no time!" Kiba declared with a smirk as Akamaru once again chimed in with his own happy barks, all was going well until the Inuzuka stiffened completely, looking like a wooden board.<p>

"Kiba? What's wrong?" Naruto stared with curiosity, it looked like the dog boy had seen a ghost or worse, an enemy. Kiba let out a low growl and in an instant Akamaru was by his side snarling too,  
>"What is <em>she<em> doing here!? She was one of the sound four! Naruto!?" Kiba angrily demanded an explanation causing Tayuya's face to fall somewhat, she had really been enjoying her day with the blonde, all of her troubles, her past and everything else had seemed to have been washed away with the sunset, this however was a painful reminder that she'd never escape who she was. Naruto's frown decorated his face, he noticed the red head's expression and immediately became defensive,  
>"Tch! That doesn't matter anymore, that's not who she is now! Granny Tsunade personally gave me the mission to take care of her and that's what I'm gunna do!" Naruto declared, clenching his fists, he didn't care what people said, Tayuya was his friend, she had helped him more today than most people had in a life time.<p>

"Ahhh...sorry,sorry! I didn't realise that she was given to you as a mission, that makes more sense!" Kiba's face softened once more and he offered an apologetic smile to the blonde who only seemed to grow angrier, much to the dog boy's confusion, he tilted his head to the side questioningly,  
>"She not just a-!" Naruto yelled adamantly but was swiftly cut off by the kunoichi in question,<br>"That's right I _am_ a mission! N' this mission is fuckin' busy so why don't you take your puny little mutt an' get the fuck outta here!?" Tayuya roared aggressively, her frown was deeply rooted across her face, if looks could kill, her glare would have put Kiba six feet under by now.

"Grrr! Akamaru's no mutt! He's the best nin-dog around! You'll see he'll get huge so you better watch what you say! Right Akamaru!?" Kiba defended in annoyance, he could take it when people insulted him but when they insulted his partner it made his blood boil, Tayuya merely smirked,  
>"I thought I told you to get outta here?! You're obviously the bitch of your dog clan so you should be used to taking orders!" The red head spat with venom, she was sick of this already, she hated that this had ruined her mood, reminded her of who she was, or who she used to be.<br>'_I'm not like that anymore! I won't be like that! I...I just want to be happy.'_ She thought to herself somewhat saddened by the turn of events, she just wanted to escape her past.  
>"Tch! There's no way a man like me would take orders from a woman like you!" Kiba snarled clearly annoyed, he couldn't believe that this girl was even alive, never mind in his village. A fear of deep dread and regret fell upon him as his nose picked up a very familiar scent behind him.<br>"Oh~? And what is wrong with following orders from a _woman_?" Tsume Inuzuka questioned with a hard, cold edge to her tone, Kiba gulped while Akamaru pressed his head against the ground, his ears flopping downwards in fear.

"Ahhh...ha..haha...Kaa-chan, it's not what it sounds like?" Kiba offered bravely, his mother always did terrify him, she was the pack leader, and right now he really did feel like the bitch of the clan ready to take orders while running with his tail between his legs.  
>"Well, you're clearly havin' problems because of your masculine behaviour, maybe we should get you neutered, that ought to fix it!" Tsume growled out a threat causing Kiba to pale considerably,<br>"Haha! No, no I can follow orders from women! See, let's leave! Cya Naruto! I'd love to stay an' talk about your training but the family jewels are on the line!" He quickly spat out before running from the training ground, his mother merely scoffed, walking away with Akamaru in her arms, not bothering to even say goodbye as she left Naruto and Tayuya.

"Hmph, 'bout fuckin' time!" Tayuya hissed with anger, she fell quiet afterwards, glaring at the ground with a twisted expression upon her face, Naruto could tell she was hurt, pained even, he knew that expression too well, he would wear it himself whenever the villagers would attack him when he was younger. Silently he went to her side, slumping down next to her, his arm brushing against hers as he slipped quietly down the bark to sit with her. She looked at him with questioning eyes, not fully understanding what the blonde's intentions were.

Naruto stretched out his legs, laying them over one another as he sat comfortably in silence with his roommate as she studied him, he offered a caring, warm smile though it did little to make her feel any better. Without thinking any further Naruto gathered his courage and decided to comfort her, wordlessly, he stroked his right hand through the back of her gorgeous crimson locks then gently guided her head down on to his lap. She was surprised, confused and really didn't know what was happening, so she just accepted the warm feeling that came with him playing with her hair.

She rolled over slightly onto her back so she could see him, her chocolate orbs looked straight past him, looking into the bed of leaves above them that offered them shade, the red head saw the shade dancing over her face, the leaf like pattern being followed thanks to the retreating sun's rays, the saddened kunoichi peered up through the leaves to look at the soothing golden sunset, all the while she could feel him delicately running his finger tips through her hair, combing it with them softly. Tayuya knew she should object to this kind of thing, she knew she should snap up and curse at him for treating her this way. Yet she felt so weak. The warmth that filled her with a comforting embrace, the calming smile that he looked down at her with that she could see from the corner of her eye, how happy and grateful he looked, they were so at peace together, just like yesterday night.

"I'm glad you're here Tayu-chan. It really makes me happy." He admitted honestly, his smile only widening as a hint of pink brushed over his cheeks, he wasn't embarrassed though, he just wanted her to know what he thought. She was not just some mission to him, she was much, much more, Tayuya was his friend but sometimes he wondered that, if he kept enjoying her company so much, that she might just become much, much more than just some friend to him. The red head blushed furiously at his simple confession, her face became crimson and heated, she felt tears attempting to form in her eyes at her embarrassment yet she held them back desperately, Tayuya wanted to tell him, the kunoichi desperately wanted to let him know,  
>'<em>I'm glad you're here too, here for <em>_**me**_**' **She thought to herself as her eyes danced over his soft, warm smile, though she quickly buckled under the pressure and all she could spit out was,  
>"S-Shut up! Idiot!" To her surprise he chuckled peacefully, a gentle look falling over his features as they watched the Konoha sun set together. She was the best mission he'd ever been given.<p>

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><p>Hey everyone hope you enjoyed the story! I know this has taken forever to update and has kinda been at the back of my list but i worked hard on this chapter to hopefully make up for it! haha. I'd love to hear some feedback and what you guys think of this story, all reviews are really aprieciated and i respond to all of them through pm! Thanks a lot! I wonder if anyone got the references in this chapter haha, and if you'd like me continue let me know! I'm unsure of how to divide my writing time lately and am busy on multiple stories, its always inspiring to see people asking for more haha.<p> 


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